Frequent earthquakes in the Far West
108 houses in Jagannath Rural Municipality were completely damaged and 460 houses were partially damaged by the 5.2 Richter scale earthquake that hit Gotri in Bajura on Saturday morning. Locals have said that the walls of many houses in the municipality around Jagannath have also cracked.
Village Chairman Kali Bahadur Shahi said that 46 houses in Jagannath-5 Darzi were completely damaged and 86 houses were partially damaged by the earthquake. "Fifty families of Darji village are spending the night under tarpaulins because they are torn apart," said Jagannath-5 Ward President Gauri Sarki, "There is no condition to live in those houses." Ward President Sarki said that the displaced families were provided by the Red Cross and started the work by collecting tarpaulins from the village.
In Jagannath-2, 24 houses were completely damaged and 93 were partially damaged, in Ward 6, 18 houses were completely damaged and 104 houses were partially damaged. Similarly, in Ward-4, 10 houses have been completely damaged and 122 houses have been partially damaged. In Ward-3, 10 houses were completely damaged and 44 houses were partially damaged, according to the disaster management branch of the rural municipality. Similarly, 24 schools, 11 health posts and 6 ward office buildings were also damaged, according to the rural municipality.
The chief district officer of Bajura, Meghnath Padhya, said that work is underway to collect accurate and factual details of the damage across the district. In Jagannath Rural Municipality, Swamikartik Rural Municipality and Budhinanda Municipality, houses were partially damaged. "We have sent 50 tripals and blankets to Jagannath," Prajia Padhya said. According to the records of the National Earthquake Measurement and Research Center, 37 small and large earthquakes have occurred in the mountainous districts of Far West since 079.
Bajhang has recorded 14 earthquakes since October 2014. During this period, Bajura has the highest number of epicenters and recorded 16 earthquakes.
During this period, 6 people were killed by an earthquake of 6.6 Richter scale on the night of 23rd November 2079, being the epicenter of Doti. The previous night, an earthquake of magnitude 5.7 took place in Khaptad National Park.
Lok Bahadur Bisht, an associate professor of geography at Kailali Multipurpose Campus, says that the earthquakes currently occurring in the Sudurpaschim Hills may be a precursor to the possibility of a major earthquake. "Various studies have shown that there is a lot of energy stored in the ground of this area," he said. "A devastating earthquake can occur at any time." Tells . He said, "The mountain houses are weak". There is an excessive load on the roof . There is no necessary vigilance,' said Bhatt, 'It is also necessary to retrofit the old buildings.'
